Institution

The ZZF Potsdam Researches Contemporary History

The Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam (ZZF) is an institute that researches contemporary history in the twentieth century and its relationship to the present. German and European social history after 1945 is at the centre of its research, which is also examined in its international context. In addition to basic research, the provision of research infrastructures and the transfer of knowledge are central tasks of the ZZF, especially through its digital platforms. 

As a member of the Leibniz Association, the ZZF receives institutional funding from the state of Brandenburg, the federal states and the federal government. The institute also receives third-party funding for research projects. The ZZF cooperates with numerous university and non-university research institutions in Germany and abroad and has an internationally oriented guest researcher programme. The institute has joint appointments with various universities – such as the University of Potsdam, the Free University of Berlin and the European University Viadrina – and co-operates with numerous other universities in research, teaching and the training of young academics. The ZZF is headed by Director Prof. Dr. Frank Bösch.

In addition to the Directorate and the Public History department, the institute’s academic work is currently organised into five departments:

• Communism and Society,
• Knowledge – Economy – Politics,
• Media and Information Societies,
• Regimes of the Social Sphere,
• Globalizations in a Divided World.